In some ways, Saturday inaugurated the Dejan Joveljić era with a bang; in others, without one. What did the Sounders' 2-2 draw with Chicago mean for the team going forward with their summer signing?
Any time the Timbers come to town, there is a chance for the best of heroic excellence. Instead, the Sounders delivered the worst of mind-boggling, titanic failure.
It was a game many previous iterations of the Sounders would have let fall to a draw or even a disastrous loss. And yet the Sounders held out the win, even without Cristian Roldan.
Despite a two-goal loss in the first leg and a road score for Tigres UANL, the Sounders nearly came away with a semifinals berth in CCC. But the final cherry on top evaded them in the end, and though there were plenty of silver linings, it was an early exit for the dynasty-aspirant Seattle.
It was an odd journey, especially in the first half, but three points and a clean sheet is three points and a clean sheet. Oh, and Paul Rothrock is still Paulie Primetime.